


What's Keeping Me Up at Night

by khaleesiq



Category: Vampire Academy & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Boarding School, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Miscommunication
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-30
Updated: 2016-06-30
Packaged: 2018-07-19 06:15:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7348444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/khaleesiq/pseuds/khaleesiq
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sydney needs Rose's help when it comes to dating Adrian. Little does she know that Rose has ulterior motives.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What's Keeping Me Up at Night

**Author's Note:**

> Guys, I can't do all the work here. Rose/Sydney is a such a good ship and it is not getting the appreciation it deserves. Also, Adrian is completely irresponsible in this, but when is he not. 
> 
> Title from the song "Up at Night" by Cimorelli.

Since she started living with her, Sydney has never seen Rose so calm. Usually the dark-haired girl was a bundle of energy, constantly trying to get Sydney to take part in her antics. Sydney always declined, but it never stopped Rose from asking.

But ever since that first day of freshman year, when Rose stuck out her hand and declared, “I’m Rose, your new roommate, and I’m about to make your life a hell of a lot more interesting,” Sydney had never seen her so…still.

And Sydney thinks it may have something to do with what she just said. Although she can’t imagine why.

“What do you mean you have a crush on Adrian?” Rose demands, crossing her arms. “Isn’t he ten years older than you or something?”

Sydney hums, falling back onto her bed. Just like how she can’t think of a time when Rose was so calm, Sydney has never felt so high. Not that she’s ever done drugs before, but if she did, she can imagine it would feel a little bit like this. “He’s, like, four years older than me, it’s not a big deal. Besides, I’m turning eighteen soon.”

“ _Soon_ ,” Rose emphasizes, and Sydney swears she can hear a scoff in her voice. “He’s your _student teacher_. It’s completely inappropriate.”

Sydney sits up so she can glare at Rose. It’s strange how this one little crush has completely reversed their roles. Usually it was Sydney chastising Rose, not the other way around. “And your crush on your PE teacher _wasn’t_?”

Rose rolls her eyes. “That’s different. I knew that nothing was ever going to happen between me and Dimitri—”

“ _Mr. Belikov_ ,” Sydney can’t help but correct.

“—but you’re acting like you can actually ask Adrian out,” Rose finishes as if Sydney hadn’t even spoken.

“The age difference isn’t _that_ significant,” Sydney reiterates. “And I’m not going to ask him out! I just think that he might be into me too.”

“You could get him fired,” Rose points out.

“We’re not going to date!” Sydney protests. She huffs out a breath. She doesn’t understand why Rose is getting so worked up about this. “You have nothing to worry about.”

“I’m not worried,” Rose grumbles. “I just—I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

Sydney raises an eyebrow. When has Rose ever cared about something like that? “Why would I get hurt?”

Rose turns her head to the side, and Sydney wonders if she’s purposely avoiding eye contact. “I just know how seriously you take everything. I don’t want you to get too attached to Adrian and then end up disappointed.”

Now it’s Sydney’s turn to roll her eyes. “I’m not stupid. I’m not going to get too _attached_ to Adrian. I just—I just think he’s cute, that’s all.”

“That’s all,” Rose repeats, sounding unconvinced. “Alright, but if he ends up breaking your heart I’ll have to break his face.”

Sydney smiles, because that’s the Rose she knows and loves. The tough girl who would do anything to protect her friends. “I’ll make sure to save you the trouble. Anyway, I have to get going to that study group.”

Rose gives her a confused look, one that Sydney’s not surprised by. She’s told Rose about her study group for medieval history a million times, but Rose can be a bit forgetful sometimes. “You didn’t tell me about any study group.”

“Actually I did,” Sydney says as she carefully places her history folder into her backpack. “But don’t worry, I’ll be back before you know it.”

“I’ll probably be asleep,” Rose points out, turning away from her.

Sydney grins, bidding her goodbye as she heads out of their room. She takes the familiar path down to the library where her study group is meeting. Not for the first time, she thinks about how incredibly lucky she is to be attending school at such a prestigious and beautiful school.

The architecture reminds her of an ancient castle, complete with stone walls and high ceilings. It’s separated into three main parts: the lower level with all the classrooms and dining room, the upper floors with all the dorms, and then the basement with common areas like the library and computer labs.

Attending this school doesn’t come without a price, though. Not that Sydney has to pay the $20,000 tuition with her full-ride scholarship. She can’t imagine all the rich kids that go here just taking this opportunity for granted by slacking off and only using the common areas to make out with each other. In fact, Sydney’s parents would never have even considered letting her attend without the scholarship.

When she reaches the study room she had reserved she’s not surprised to see that no one else has arrived yet. She’s always at least ten minutes early so that she can make sure everything is in order. Once she has all her study materials set out, she leans back in her chair, takes a book out of her backpack, and starts reading.

She jumps a little when she hears a light knocking at the door. She looks up, shocked to see Adrian’s face grinning at her.

“Adrian,” she says with a small smile as she sets her book down. “What are you doing here?” Despite being a student teacher Adrian had insisted on all the students calling him by his first name. His casual nature was the complete opposite of Sydney’s more formal personality, but it was what originally drew Sydney to him.

Adrian leans against the doorframe and crosses his arms. “I was looking for a book on art from the Renaissance when I noticed you in here. Are you alone for the night or…?”

Sydney shakes her head. “I’m meeting a study group, but I’m early.”

Adrian smiles. “As always.”

Sydney ducks her head to hide a blush. That’s why she and Adrian had managed to grow so close, because she arrived early enough for them to get into deep conversations about art history.

“Actually, I wanted to ask you something,” Adrian says, suddenly looking a little nervous. His expression throws Sydney off, because she’s sure that she’s never seen Adrian look anything other than enthusiastic and confident.

“Go ahead,” Sydney says, her eyes wide with hope. Then she remembers what Rose said before she left. _Don’t get attached, don’t get attached_.

“Did you want to, I don’t know, go out for coffee sometime?” Adrian asks, looking as hopeful as Sydney feels.

“Um, yeah,” Sydney says immediately. “That sounds nice.” As nonchalant as she sounds Sydney is freaking out inside.

“Great, that’s,” Adrian pauses to huff out a laugh, “really great. I’ll text you the details?”

Sydney nods enthusiastically, just as she notices Eddie, one of the members of her study group, walk into the library. “Sounds good. I’ll see you in class tomorrow.”

Adrian waves goodbye just as Eddie walks into the room. He takes one look at Sydney and freezes. “You look happy. Should I be scared?”

Sydney laughs, thinking about how excited Rose is going to be when she hears about Sydney’s date with Adrian.

***

Considering how upset Rose was when she heard about Sydney’s crush on Adrian, Sydney probably should have seen this coming.

“Are you fucking insane?” Rose asks, throwing her hands up in disbelief. “I told you he could get fired if you went on a date with him, and what do you do? You set up a fucking date with him!”

“To be fair, he asked _me_ out,” Sydney says. But Rose is right, Adrian could get fired for going out with a student, even if he is just a student teacher. Sydney _knew_ that, and yet, when Adrian had suggested going out for coffee, the consequences hadn’t even crossed her mind. What is Adrian _doing_ to her?

“I don’t like what Adrian is doing to you,” Rose says, as if she had read Sydney’s mind. “He’s turning you reckless. Which makes me the responsible one by default.” She slumps down onto the bed. “You need to end this before it even begins.”

“It’s not even a real date,” Sydney points out. “It’s just coffee.” And yet, as she says this, she’s searching frantically through her closet for something that’ll impress Adrian. Usually she doesn’t care what he thinks of her outfit since she has a uniform, but outside of school? She needs to dress to impress.

Unfortunately, most of her wardrobe is only impressing for job interviews.

“That’s how it always starts,” Rose says. “He asks you out for coffee to keep it casual, you two have a great time and then next thing you know you’re saying your vows.” By the end of her sentence she’s so upset she’s practically yelling.

Sydney frowns, distressed by both her lack of cute clothes and Rose’s behavior. “I don’t think we’ll move that quickly,” Sydney says quietly, trying to keep herself calm.

It’s just annoying, how Rose constantly has someone by her side, and the first time Sydney has someone for herself Rose is trying to stop it. Why can’t she just let Sydney have _something_? Why does it always have to be about _Rose_?

“You know what I mean,” Rose says, waving her hand. “I just don’t think you’re ready for something like this. He’s older than you, probably has some experience, and what do you have?”

“Would you just be quiet!” Sydney suddenly snaps. “ _Please._ ”

Sydney’s outburst stuns Rose into silence. She stares at Sydney with wide eyes, unsure of what to do. And honestly? Sydney doesn’t quite know how to react either. She hadn’t expected to yell at Rose like that, she was only a little irritated.

“I’m sorry,” Sydney says quietly, sitting down on her bed slowly. She clasps her hands together, setting them into her lap carefully.

“No, shit Sydney,” Rose says, laughing a little. She sits next to Sydney, a little less gracefully, and laughs. Sydney furrows her brow; that wasn’t quite the reaction she was expecting from Rose. “That was—amazing.”

Sydney quirks an eyebrow up. “’Amazing’? I yelled at you when you’ve done nothing wrong.”

“You stood up to me,” Rose corrects, smirking. “You can be suck a pushover sometimes, Sage. You need to stick up for yourself, especially when it comes to me. I know I can be kind of pushy.”

Sydney smiles. Rose has got that right at least. “But you’re right,” Sydney admits. “Adrian is way out of my league. He’s going to be expecting something that I can’t give and—”

“Hey, slow down,” Rose says, putting a hand on Sydney’s thigh. And she doesn’t know why, but Sydney suddenly feels a little hot and her heart rate speeds up. “I’m sure he’s not going to expect sex on the first date or anything.”

“But I still don’t really know what to do,” Sydney says. “I’ve never done something like this before.”

Rose sighs. “Because I’ve been such an asshole to you about dating Adrian I’m going to help you.”

Sydney turns to her, shocked. She has to admit, Rose says some pretty shocking things from time to time, but this one might take the cake. “You want to help me…date Adrian?” she asks in disbelief.

Rose nods. “Think of it as a business venture. You’re into that kind of shit, right?”

Sydney doesn’t want to admit that that _does_ make it sound a little more exciting for fear of giving Rose more material to tease her with.

“You really don’t have to help me though, Rose,” Sydney says. “In fact, I think you’d be more help staying out of it.” Sydney leaves the fact that Rose has a reputation of ruining good things left unsaid.

Rose eyes the clothes that Sydney had pulled out of her closet already. They’re all laid neatly on the bed because Sydney can’t stand the thought of just throwing them on the floor willy-nilly. “How’s it going trying to find an outfit?” Rose asks.

Sydney narrows her eyes at her. “None of your business.”

Instead of giving her a trademark Rose quip, Rose simply stands and heads over to her own closet. She rummages through it for a second before triumphantly pulling out a blue sweater dress. Sydney is surprised that Rose even owns something that modest.

Throwing the dress at Sydney, Rose tells her, “If that dress doesn’t work then I’ll stay out of it. If it does, well then I’ll write up a business plan.”

Sydney really doesn’t want her help. She really thinks that adding Rose to the mixture is going to make things worse.

And yet, she ends up putting on the sweater dress anyway.

***

As much as she hates to admit it, the dress worked. At least, Sydney’s pretty sure it was the dress because there’s no way it was her personality. She talked way too much and disagreed with Adrian way too much, and Adrian got a bored look in his eye when she started going on about the European economy.

But then Adrian raked his eyes over Sydney’s body, over the way the dress hugged all her curves because the dress was a little tight on her. And Sydney knew she had him.

When she gets back to the room she’s surprised to see that Rose is still awake. Despite only going out for coffee, neither Sydney nor Adrian were available until after dinner, so they were only at the café for an hour before closing. It was a little after ten by the time Sydney got back, and despite being a badass, Rose craved her sleep.

“How’d it go?” Rose asks right away with a knowing smirk.

“Okay,” Sydney says, deciding it’s best to just get right down to business, “you clearly know more about dating than me so I’m going to let you help.”

Rose sits up straighter. “Really?”

Sydney nods. “He really liked the dress. And I doubt I would’ve gotten a second date based on my personality alone.”

“Please Sage,” Rose says, standing up and putting her hands on Sydney’s shoulders, “you’re a great catch. You can’t put yourself down like that.”

Whatever Sydney was about to say gets stuck in her throat. She can’t think, not when Rose stares at her so earnestly, like she really, truly believes that anyone would be lucky to have Sydney. That even _she_ would be lucky to have Sydney.

But Rose turns away before Sydney can think too much about it, and says, “So you got a second date, huh?”

She almost sounds disappointed, which doesn’t make sense _at all_. Rose _wanted_ Sydney to successfully woo Adrian so that she could help out.

“Yeah,” Sydney says, staring at Rose’s back in confusion. “He’s taking me out to the movies next weekend.”

When Rose turns around she’s got a big grin on her face, as if she wasn’t upset at all just a few seconds ago. “Good. That gives us plenty of time to prepare you.”

Sydney raises her eyebrows. Despite agreeing to let Rose help her out with dating Adrian just a minute ago she’s starting to get a little nervous again. What does Rose mean by _prepare you_?

Rose must be able to see how worried Sydney looks because she waves her hand and says, “Oh don’t look so scared. I’m just going to give you some tips so that you can get a third date.”

“If I’m not myself then how is this ever going to work out in the long run?” Sydney points out. Unlike Rose, she doesn’t do casual dating. She can’t just go on a couple of dates with Adrian and call it good. She actually wants it to work out.

“You’re not _not_ being yourself,” Rose reasons. “You’re just being…a better version of yourself. Now let’s go to bed, it’s pretty late.”

Sydney glances at the clock where it reads 10:33. She rolls her eyes but gets ready for bed anyway. And if she stares a little too long at Rose’s naked back before she pulls on her pajama top, well, she keeps that to herself.

***

By asking for Rose’s help Sydney had been expecting Rose to help pick out clothes and put on makeup before a date, not butt into every single interaction Sydney has with Adrian.

In fact, Sydney was having a very nice conversation with Adrian about medieval architecture when Rose knocks her shoulder into Sydney’s and says, “I like the castles and shit they’ve got going on.”

“What do you think you’re doing?” Sydney hisses at Rose while glancing nervously at Adrian. Adrian doesn’t seem to mind Rose’s presence, but then again, he doesn’t know Rose as well as Sydney.

“Talking about castles,” Rose tells Sydney with a big grin on her face. “You know who could live in a castle if she wanted? Sydney.”

Sydney raises an eyebrow as Rose puts an arm around Sydney’s shoulder and shakes her body a little as if to emphasize her point. Adrian seems just as confused as Sydney feels.

“Why would she live in a castle?” Adrian asks.

“Because she’s as pretty as a princess,” Rose quips. Sydney snorts, because as stupid as that joke was it was pretty cute. Adrian seems to think so too, which seems like a win.

“You’re pretty funny…” he trails off, realizing he doesn’t know Rose’s name.

Rose sticks out her hand. “Rose Hathaway, the greatest person you’ll ever meet at this school.”

Adrian shakes it, replying, “I think you mean _second_ greatest.” He looks at Sydney and winks. Sydney’s not really one for cheesy lines, but she swears she nearly melts at his words.

Rose rolls her eyes. “That’s disgusting. I approve.”

Adrian grins and bids them goodbye, claiming that he needs to go set up for the next painting class. Sydney turns on Rose, crossing her arms over her chest as she glares at her.

“What was that?” she demands.

“I was being your _wingwoman_ ,” Rose explains casually, as if she didn’t almost ruin all of Sydney’s chances with Adrian.

“I don’t need a wingwoman,” Sydney tells her. “At least, not while we’re at school. Clearly I was doing just fine on my own. It’s the dates I need help with.”

Rose shakes her head, her dark brown hair swishing with it. Usually she has it up in a ponytail, but Sydney thinks she likes it better like this. She likes the natural waves, and the way Rose plays with it when it gets in her face. It’s a little tangly, and it makes Sydney want to run her hands through it while she—

Whoa. Where did that thought come from? Sydney shakes her head to get rid of the idea, trying to convince herself that she’s just tired. She ignores the fact that she got a good eight hours of sleep last night.

“The more appealing you are in real life,” Rose says as they start walking down the hall towards their next class, “the better your dates will go. That’s your first lesson.”

That’s pretty much how the rest of the week goes for Sydney. She’ll be talking to Adrian, things will be going well, and then Rose will enter and find some way to talk Sydney up. Sydney feels completely mortified every time, but Adrian just laughs and goes along with it.

Sydney figures that he must really like Sydney to be able to put up with Rose’s shit.

By the time Saturday rolls around Sydney is pretty done with Rose’s help. But Rose still begs Sydney to let her help with makeup and clothes.

“C’mon Sydney _please,_ ” Rose begs. “The dress I picked out worked last time, you said it yourself. You were fine with my help at the beginning of the week. What changed?”

Probably the fact that Sydney hasn’t had a single conversation alone with Adrian since Rose decided to “help”. But she doesn’t want to hurt Rose’s feelings, and as annoying as Rose can be, Sydney knows that Rose really is trying her best. So she says nothing.

Rose sighs at Sydney’s lack of response. “Fine. I understand that I can be a bit of a nuisance sometimes.”

Sydney laughs. _A bit_? That’s an understatement. But she remains silent as she continues searching through her closet.

“And if you really think I’m ruining your chances with Adrian then just say the word and I’ll stop,” Rose continues. “It’s just…I’ve had you to myself for so long that I don’t really know how to share you. I’m afraid that one day I’m going to come back to the room from a party and you won’t be there for me tell you all about it. So I’ve been trying to insert myself into your relationship with Adrian as a way to keep you in my life. I’m sorry I’ve been such a selfish asshole.”

Sydney turns around and stares at Rose in disbelief. It amazes her how deep Rose is sometimes. She usually just thinks of her as this tough as nails party girl that she forgets that Rose is still just a teenage girl like Sydney. One that cares deeply about her friends even if she won’t admit it out loud.

“What color?” Sydney responds after a few moments of silence.

Rose blinks in confusion. “What?”

“What color do you think looks best on me?” Sydney elaborates. “I wore blue last time, which is fine, but I don’t think it really complements my skin tone.”

Rose smiles as she stands up and heads to her own closet. “Actually, I have just the color for you.” She takes a couple seconds to look through her closet, and then produces a skater dress in a color that Sydney never thought she would ever wear in her lifetime. “Red.”

Sydney takes a deep breath and then snatches the dress from Rose’s hands. Rose beams as she watches Sydney pull her shirt off. Sydney tries to ignore the feeling of Rose’s burning gaze as she quickly changes into the red dress. She doesn’t want to know what Rose is thinking, if Rose can see the blush creeping down from Sydney’s cheeks and spreading throughout the rest of her body.

Because to Rose, it’s just a friend getting dressed in front of another friend. And that’s what it should mean for Sydney too. But as much as she tries to convince herself that, she knows it’s not true.

_Adrian_. Focus on Adrian. That’s who she likes, that’s who she’s going on a date with tonight. Rose is just a friend helping Sydney out.

“I am a genius,” Rose gasps as she takes Sydney in. Sydney feels herself heat up under Rose’s gaze. It reminds her of when Adrian checked her out on their coffee date.

Sydney lets herself get manhandled into a chair in front of the mirror. Rose gets to work picking out Sydney’s makeup, using colors much darker than Sydney would ever consider. And then when Rose starts putting it on, her touch so much gentler than Sydney expects, she gets so close to Sydney that her breath puffs over Sydney’s face and Sydney forgets how to breathe.

“Sorry,” Rose whispers, leaning back a little.

Sydney wishes she could tell Rose to come closer again, that she doesn’t mind. But if Rose questioned her Sydney knows she wouldn’t have a good excuse.

***

Sydney has absolutely no idea what’s going on. In the movie, that is. In real life, she’s all too aware of Adrian reaching his arm out to rest it around Sydney’s shoulders. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knows that this is a cliché date move, but she’s too nervous to laugh about it.

It’s just…well, she doesn’t actually know why she’s so nervous if she’s being totally honest with herself. Adrian has been the perfect gentlemen all night, buying her movie ticket, paying for snacks, even complimenting her dress and how nice she looked in it.

And yet, Sydney couldn’t help but think about Rose’s eyes on her when she saw the dress on Sydney. There wasn’t much difference between the two looks, except in the way it made Sydney feel. With Rose, she felt as if she was the most beautiful person in the world. With Adrian, she felt more like a hot girl he was checking out on the street.

But there’s nothing not to like about Adrian, nothing wrong with this date tonight. Even the movie ends up being much more entertaining than Sydney originally thought it would be, and she says as much as she and Adrian walk to her car afterward.

Adrian laughs. “I’m glad you liked it. I was kind of nervous about what you would think actually.”

It makes Sydney feel a little better, hearing that Adrian was nervous too. It reminds Sydney that he’s not completely cool and confident, that he’s human too.

_Just like Rose._

She shakes her head, trying to get rid of the thought. Adrian notices the motion and tilts his head in confusion. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing,” Sydney says, not realizing how weird that was. “I just think it’s funny that you thought I wasn’t the kind of girl who wouldn’t like action movies.”

Adrian laughs, leaning against the side of Sydney’s car. They had taken separate cars since Adrian lives on the opposite side of town and it would have been too much of a hassle to pick up Sydney. Not that he didn’t offer, but Sydney didn’t want him to go to that much trouble for her.

“You’re something else, Sage,” Adrian says, using the familiar nickname from class.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Sydney says. It comes out sounding more awkward than flirty but Adrian doesn’t seem to notice. In fact, he takes a step closer to Sydney, taking her hand in his and rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.

“I’d really like to kiss you,” Adrian says in a low voice.

Sydney looks down at his lips, trying to imagine the feeling of his lips on hers. But instead of Adrian, she imagines someone else.

Her heart leaps into her throat and she backs away from Adrian. “I have to get back to school,” she blurts, frantically searching for her keys in her purse so she doesn’t have to see the disappointed look in his face. “Curfew and all that.”

Adrian nods, taking the hint. He’s such a gentleman and Sydney is so lucky, and yet she can’t stop herself from getting into the car and bidding him goodnight.

***

When she gets back to her room later that night, Sydney throws herself on the bed dramatically. It reminds her of a teen movie, when the parents tell the teenage daughter that she can’t date the rebel bad boy they don’t approve of.

Sydney can hear the smile in Rose’s voice as she says, “Penny for your thoughts, Sage?”

The nickname sounds much better coming out of Rose’s mouth than it does Adrian’s, Sydney thinks.

“The date was amazing,” Sydney mumbles into the pillow.

“Okay,” Rose says slowly. Sydney is amazed that Rose could even understand what she said. “So why do you seem so upset?”

Sydney pulls her head up, staring Rose right in the face as she says bluntly, “He said he wants to kiss me.”

Rose watches her for a second, probably waiting for Sydney to add something else, and then bursts into laughter.

Sydney frowns, waiting for Rose to finish. She knew this would be Rose’s response, but it doesn’t make her any less embarrassed. She stuffs her face back into her pillow to hide the red creeping into her cheeks.

She hears Rose’s laughter die off, and then a couple moments later there’s a hand rubbing her back. Rose is probably trying to coax her into a sitting position, but Sydney would rather die than face her.

“I’m sorry for laughing,” Rose says, sounding sincere. “For me, that wouldn’t be a problem. But you…you’ve never kissed anyone, have you, Sydney?”

Sydney sits up, turning on her side as she looks up at Rose. “I’ve never dated anyone, let alone _kissed_ someone. And Adrian—he’s probably kissed hundreds of girls. He’s going to kiss me tomorrow and then realize how completely and utterly terrible I am—”

“Okay, hey,” Rose says, trying to slow Sydney down. “Kissing isn’t something you can master. It’s different for everyone. And it’s something you can only get used to with practice, so don’t even try researching kissing techniques, Sage.”

Sydney finds herself smiling despite herself. That’s exactly what she was planning on doing as soon as Rose fell asleep. “Still, he’s going to know that I’ve never kissed anyone and think I’m some kind of loser.”

Rose rolls her eyes, and before Sydney even realizes what’s happening, leans in and captures Sydney’s lips with her own. Sydney freezes, staring at Rose wide-eyed as she brings her hands up and cradles Sydney’s face between her palms.

“Rose, what are you—” she starts to ask but Rose cuts her off.

“You want him to think you’re some kind of loser who’s never kissed anyone?” Rose asks, her words coming out in a whisper. Sydney shakes her head. “Then just trust me. And loosen up would you?”

Sydney does as she’s told because following instructions, that’s what she’s good at. She closes her eyes as Rose leans in again, her lips softly brushing against Sydney’s. It feels innocent at first, none of that messy kissing Sydney sees in movies, until she feels the tip of Rose’s tongue gliding along the seam of Sydney’s mouth.

And Sydney can take a hint. She opens her mouth slightly, letting Rose’s tongue brush against her teeth, the inside of her mouth, her tongue. She shivers a little, moving her head forward to brush her open lips against Rose’s.

She has no idea what to do with her hands as Rose carefully moves her lips against Sydney’s, never going too fast, never changing the tempo. It feels wrong, to just have her arms hanging uselessly at her sides, and at some point Rose must realize it too, because she takes Sydney’s arms and wraps them around Rose’s shoulders.

And then Rose is slowly pushing Sydney onto her back, pushing her tongue deeper into Sydney’s mouth. And Sydney gladly accepts it, moving her hands up to the back of Rose’s head. She tangles her fingers in Rose’s thick hair and pulls her head closer, needing to feel the pressure of Rose’s lips, harder—

Rose pulls back suddenly, her eyes wide as she searches Sydney’s face. Sydney feels helpless in the lost expression of Rose’s eyes, wishing there was some solution. But kissing isn’t something she’s an expert on.

“I think that’s enough practice for now,” Rose blurts, scurrying off the bed.

Sydney sits up, feeling like she’s in a daze, as Rose hurries out of the room. She casts one last glance back at Sydney, and then slams the door shut behind her.

Sydney stares at her hands, the ones that had just been brushing through Rose’s dark hair a second ago, wondering why she’d much rather spend tomorrow kissing Rose than Adrian.

***

Sydney isn’t stupid. She knows Rose is avoiding her, and she knows that it has to do with what happened Saturday night. Rose had spent all of Sunday studying with her earbuds in. That was Sydney’s first clue that something was wrong. Rose never spends more than thirty minutes on homework.

Now, on Monday, Sydney is currently having her _third_ conversation with Adrian with no interruptions from Rose. Sydney would confront Rose about it, if she only knew where Rose was.

“Sage,” Adrian says, the nickname bringing Sydney back, “what’s going on? You seem a little out of it.”

“Sorry,” Sydney apologizes sincerely. She wishes she could get the feeling of Rose’s lips out of her mind so that she could give Adrian the attention he deserves. “I think I’m just tired.”

“You can go back to your dorm if you want,” Adrian says. The bell rang about an hour ago and they are currently in the library so that Adrian could help Sydney with her art final. “We can work on this tomorrow.”

Sydney’s not one to procrastinate, but at this point her mind is too muddled with thoughts of Rose and what they did last night and what it means for them. So she agrees with Adrian and decides to meet with him after classes the next day.

What didn’t occur to Sydney was that Rose knew that Sydney was going to be out of the dorm after class and was probably going to make use of that time alone. Needless to say, upon entering the room Sydney is met with a view of Rose on her back with a hand between her thighs.

And Sydney? Sydney just _stares_. She doesn’t turn away and slam the door. She doesn’t tell Rose to stop because she’s got company. She just watches as Rose slowly pumps to fingers in and out, her back arching as she moans unashamedly.

Sydney feels a wetness between her own thighs as Rose starts moving her hand faster and rougher, and then comes with a cry. Sydney’s stomach coils in an unfamiliar way, and she gets the sudden urge to reach down and get herself off.

Except, she never gets the chance because as soon as Rose has come off her high her attention is directed straight at where Sydney stands in the doorway, completely shell-shocked.

“Sydney, I—” Rose starts to say, sitting up and grabbing her uniform pants.

Sydney holds up a hand, backing out of the doorway slowly. “It’s okay, Rose. You don’t have to say anything. I—I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—” She’s not even sure what she’s saying at this point. She just knows she has to get out of there.

So she does.

***

“Why would anyone have a party on Monday night?” Sydney slurs as she rests her head on Adrian’s shoulder. “What about—” She pauses to burp. “—work and stuff?”

Adrian laughs, taking the beer bottle out of Sydney’s hand. “Okay, I think that’s enough for you, Sage.”

Sydney pouts at him. Even though the beer tastes like actual vomit she likes the way it makes her feel when she has enough of it.

“So what prompted you to come out with me tonight?” Adrian asks. “I didn’t really take you for a party girl. Then again, I didn’t think you’d like action movies so that shows how much I really know you.”

Sydney giggles, but then she suddenly freezes as she realizes it’s true. Adrian really _doesn’t_ know Sydney. Not like Rose does. What’s she even doing here with Adrian when all she really wants is to be with Rose?

“I fucking knew it.”

Sydney’s eyes widen as she realizes that she just said all of that out loud. She frowns down at her beer. “Stupid demon alcohol.”

Adrian laughs, throwing his head back and putting a hand on his stomach. “You should get drunk more often. You’re hilarious.”

“Does that mean I’m not hilarious when I’m sober?” Sydney asks, furrowing her brows. “Because rude. Wait—don’t change the subject. What do you mean you knew it?”

Adrian grins. “You and Rose. I knew you were into her.”

Sydney blinks. “ _I_ didn’t even know I was into her until like five seconds ago. How could you have known?”

“For someone who’s really smart you can be incredibly oblivious,” Adrian says, shaking his head. “The way you talk to Rose, like you’re so familiar with her and you don’t even need to think about what you’re going to say next, that’s nothing like the way you’re with me.”

Adrian’s explanation is only making Sydney’s head hurt. If she was sober she would be able to follow this conversation with no problem. But drunk? Yeah, there’s no way she’s absorbing any of this.

“When you’re with me,” Adrian continues, “you’re always trying to impress me, prove that you’re worthy or something. I don’t want you to be with someone that you can’t truly be yourself with.”

Sydney stares at him for a moment, trying to process everything he just said. When her mind finally catches up she says, “So you’re saying you don’t want to date me anymore?”

Adrian shakes his head. “I would love to keep dating you. But I know I’m not the person you really want to spend your time with. She’s waiting back at your room for you.”

Sydney knows he’s right. And no matter how hard she tries, she just can’t find it in herself to feel upset over this breakup with Adrian. If you can even call it a breakup. Were they even really dating?

She really needs to go lie down.

Adrian chuckles. “C’mon, I’ll go take you to your room.”

Sydney blushes as she realizes that she just said what was on her mind out loud again. She swears that she’s never going to drink alcohol again if it makes her lose all control like this.

“You just said that out loud again,” Adrian points out. “I’m just wondering how much alcohol it’s going to take for you to say a swear word.”

“Don’t hold your breath,” Sydney mutters, although she’s pretty sure it wouldn’t take much more than she’s already had tonight.

***

Sydney swears that she was really concentrating on not stumbling through the door to her and Rose’s room when she got back. Of course, her mind isn’t really working tonight and she ends up tripping on the rug and falling forward.

She grabs for the desk next to the door, but her hand swipes over the top of it, knocking all of the papers off the surface. Sydney meets the same fate as the papers, falling flat on her face.

“Holy shit, Sydney, are you alright?” Rose exclaims, jumping out of bed and rushing to Sydney’s side. Her dark hair falls in front of her face and her dark eyes are wide with concern and she’s so _so_ pretty that Sydney wants to cry.

Rose blushes, hiding her face behind a curtain of hair. Right. Sydney’s thoughts aren’t exactly staying in her mind at the moment.

“I guess I’ll just leave you two alone then,” Adrian says from somewhere behind them.

“Oh, Adrian, I didn’t even notice you,” Rose says, blinking up at him in surprise.

“You wouldn’t,” Adrian laughs. “Anyway, have a nice night. I’ll see you in class tomorrow, Sydney. Hopefully not too hungover.”

“Thanks for bringing her home safely,” Rose says. To Sydney she says, “C’mon. Let’s get you into bed.”

“ _You_ get into bed,” Sydney says because she loves to argue with Rose. Although she’s a little more eloquent than this. And then, after a brief moment of thought she adds, “With me.”

Rose rolls her eyes. “Okay, you’re clearly very drunk so I’m not even going to respond to that.”

Sydney shakes her head vigorously as Rose pushes her down into her bed. “No. I may be drunk but I’m being honest when I say that I like you, Rose. The alcohol isn’t making me think that, it’s just taking away my filter.”

Rose stares down at her with her arms crossed, assessing the situation. She must realize that what Sydney is saying is true because she sighs and sits down on the edge of the bed. “I believe you. But I don’t want to talk about this while you’re drunk. I want you to be able to be honest with me sober too.”

Sydney nods. “Can I just ask for one more favor?”

Rose smiles, reaching out and putting a strand of hair behind Sydney’s ear. “You know you can.”

Sydney holds her arms up and says, “Help me out of these clothes. It’s too warm in here.”

Rose starts to help and then freezes. She looks over Sydney nervously, and Sydney’s hit with the realization that she’s never seen Rose nervous. “Are you sure you’re comfortable with that?” Rose asks.

“I saw you naked,” Sydney points out. She wonders if she would be so quick to point that out if she was sober. Probably not. “It’s only fair that you see me naked too.”

Rose laughs, but Sydney notices red blooming on her cheeks. “Trust me. If this works out tomorrow we’ll have plenty of opportunity to see each other naked.”

Sydney grins as Rose helps her out of her clothes. Sydney leaves her bra and underwear on, though, and snuggles into her bed. It’s not until her head hits the pillow that she realizes just how tired she really is.

And just before she drifts off to sleep she feels Rose plant a kiss on her forehead.

***

Sydney feels as if someone is pounding on her head with a hammer. She rolls around, buries her face in her pillow and groans loudly. How does anyone drink if this is what you feel like the morning after? It’s so not worth it.

“How do you feel?” Rose asks from across the room. Sydney swears she can hear the smirk in her voice.

Sydney turns her head just enough so that she can look at Rose. “Shut up. I feel like I’m going to die.”

“From the headache or from embarrassment?” Rose asks, tilting her head.

Sydney scrunches up her face in confusion. Why in the world would she be embarrassed? Yes she was drunk last night, but she couldn’t have done anything that embarrassing—

Oh god. She told Rose that she likes her last night. And apparently Adrian _knew_ that she likes Rose. And Sydney had attempted to _flirt_ with Rose last night.

Yep. She’s definitely going to die from embarrassment.

“You just remembered, didn’t you?” Rose says with a small smile. She shifts so that she’s sitting up on her bed, her hands resting by her sides. “If you want to take it back then I won’t fault you—”

“I’m not taking it back,” Sydney says quickly. She sits up as well, mirroring Rose’s position. She’s already gotten this far, she can’t back out. “I know I was drunk when I said it, but I really meant it, Rose. I like you.”

Rose grins, crossing the room and sitting right next to Sydney on her bed. Their arms are pressed right up against each other. Sydney can feel Rose’s gaze on her, but after her admission she’s too embarrassed to look back. That is, until she feels Rose’s fingers gently stroking the side of her face. Sydney glances up, seeing Rose staring at her with a soft smile.

“You remember when you told me that you liked Adrian?” Rose says quietly. It seems so long ago now that Sydney thinks of it. “I was so angry, and it wasn’t because he was too old for you. It was because I wanted to be with you.”

Sydney gasps. She knew that Rose must feel the same way, but she never knew that Rose had liked her for so long.

“And then I offered to be your wingwoman because I thought that if I helped you out with Adrian I would convince myself that you guys belong together,” Rose continues. “But it just made me realize what a great catch you are and how jealous I am of Adrian.”

“Wow, that’s…” Sydney trails off, unsure of how to respond to that. She feels terrible all of a sudden for never noticing Rose’s feelings. Adrian’s right, she _is_ oblivious.

“It’s fine,” Rose says. “I thought that I had it under control, but that’s only because you had never shown any interest in anyone before then. I thought I would always have you to myself.”

“You do now,” Sydney says, moving her face closer. “Just as long as you promise to be honest with me from now on.”

Rose nods. “I promise. In fact, I’m going to be honest and tell you what I really want right now.”

Sydney beams. “And what’s that?”

“I want you to kiss me.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, if you guys want more rose/sydney you should follow me on [tumblr](http://roseandsydney.tumblr.com/), just sayin'.


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